3/1/15

another month, another project. this one is from my friend (since the 5th grade kinda) ahnna! pictured above - after she won 1st place in a backyard ping pong championship this past summer.

not only did we try to start a belinda carlisle cover band AND not only did she marry the funny artistic guy from my college printmaking class, but ahnna is flat out no nonsense cool. and she thinks i can build something! a tiny free library! (she apparently does't know that i only own one of those little hammers...and that's my ONLY tool.)

i'm gonna be honest and say that this project intimidates me BIG TIME. but hopefully, a miracle can happen...it's not like i'm building a real library.

this week is incubation time /google research and next weekend is thrifting and a visit to the site AKA ahnna and bob's house to talk about how they can help me - just kidding kinda - although she did say as much on her entry card. in the meantime, if any one has a five foot 4" x 4" post that you want to send my way, i'd gladly pick it up. i'm not kidding about this.

2/22/15

so, it's not a bug as i originally intended. it's just a "creature"...made from mostly socks. and what would creatures do? they would hang out in their natural habitat. which is coincidentally the warmest place i could find in minnesota in february: como park conservatory.

this was a hard challenge in the sense that i've never done anything like this before...basically make a stuffed animal from scratch. and yes, if i had to do it again i would change (improve upon) so many things. but this creature really grew on me...or rather sort of grew out of my rambling imagination.

AND thank you martha (for this challenge)...i hope you are as surprised and delighted as i am about how things turned out!

PS. if you want little kids (and who am i kidding, adults as well) to stare at you with a coy/inquisitive look, lug around a crazy stuffed creature! i could almost hear their brains trying to figure it out, figure me out and also ask me if they could touch it. just for the record a grown man did reach out and touch it when i left it laying on a ledge and another woman told me she thought i was carrying a baby - accidental social experiment!

(the senior picture with creature pose)

PPS. a big thank you to alisun abbott for help with the photos and for making me feel normal about bringing "creature" out of my apartment.

2/17/15

OK, it might be the -12 weather, but this project has gone a little off the rails. or maybe it's all the podcasts i'm listening to while sewing? or maybe it's the fact that i cleaned out my closet and found a ton of buttons and embroidery floss? but regardless, things got very messy very fast and i'm going to take the next few days to try and reign it in...or maybe not...this is an art project after all. but here is what i've been up to so far...AKA lots of hand stitching!

this is the $.27 pillow that i'm stealing the batting out of. it was on sale at the thrift store...and why no one already snatched it up is beyond me!

buttons you can no longer see!

legs!! but only three on each side, not the originally planned for five...i couldn't figure out how to make that work. i realize the obvious: if i just used my sewing machine or googled how to make a sock monkey this project would most likely be easier. but i haven't done those things and why start now.

2/1/15

FEBRUARY! my second challenge is from my friend (and mentor) martha...pictured below looking all windswept. i've known martha since the mid-1990s and i'm so lucky to have her participate in this project.

another sewing/textile related challenge...my mom is probably waiting for me to start using the sewing machine she got me! martha donated a lot of materials to incorporate into the project, so the first thing that popped into my head was some sort of sock creature...which could qualify as both fanciful and crazy! but i wanted to make something that wouldn't normally be soft and fuzzy. AHA - an insect! i knew that my entomology class in horticulture school would come in handy one day.

i'm still in the incubation stage of this challenge, but it's been so fun making doodles and doing research. i can't wait to create my creature and share the experience with you. thanks martha!!

1/24/15

holy crap, this project was really fun and so out of my comfort zone...from creating the dress, to wearing the dress in public, to ice skating, to editing this ridiculous video...it was a riot. and what a way to kick off the year. i know that i never would have done any of these things without being challenged by wendy!

so here is the final video...wendy you inspired this, i hope it makes you laugh! (embrace the ridiculous!)

1/18/15

what a fun and exhausting day working on the next part of the january challenge from wendy - THE VIDEO SHOOT! luckily, i finished the outfit last night - pictured above pre-spray paint. onto the dress i picked up at the thrift store (which was my base): i added strips of old catalogs in three layers, fabric from a quilting class i took in 2005, seam binding, plastic from tofu containers and some of my own blood since i was kinda hand-sewing blind for the most part.

thank goodness that the dress still fit when i put it on! and i'm wearing leg warmers that wendy just sent me in the mail...synchronicity. what a challenge this was...totally out of my comfort zone. but oh boy, i learned from this experience that if you want attention all you need to do is wear a costume. really. and that i love to ice skate, especially on warm sunny days! here are some of my favorite outtakes. i plan on having the video edited and up soon.

free skate rental anyone??

(a HUGE thank you to my friend/videographer heather...i could not have done this without you!!)

1/3/15

JANUARY! my first challenge is from my friend wendy...pictured above looking all sassy. she lives in philly, has two sweet adventurous boys and gives great hugs. i miss her...obviously.

what a fun challenge - especially since going dancing with wendy is one of my favorite things to do - but i asked her if i could change the dancing to ice dancing (AKA spastic figure skating sara style)...since it's january in minnesota and i need an excuse to go outside. wendy was totally game, so i'm gonna make an ice dancing dress (and maybe headdress) and hit some local lakes. should be interesting.

i found the base for my recycled dress at a thrift store near my apartment - arc's value village. i'll admit i got it in the children's department, but i liked that it already looked figure skatery!

so far, other than getting the base layer of my dress, i've gathered a bunch of fabric and paper scraps. next step: start making this freaking thing and finding the right song for my spastic moves! yes!

at the end of 2014, i was feeling pretty stagnant in the creativity department and thought what? what? what? can i do to get out of this rut. then i realized that i'm surrounded by incredibly creative people who can help me figure this out and thus OPERATION CREATIVITY CHALLENGE YO 2015 was born. it's basically 12 different challenges (one per month), all chronicled here - to keep me honest. ok, backstory...in november, i sent a letter to a varied group of friends/family (lovely volunteers) asking for help:1. I am to do one challenge per month - theme/parameters assigned by YOU.

2. I will chronicle challenge related progress/finished product over the year on my (currently very dormant, but appropriately named) blog: myfantasticdistractions.blogspot.com. If I can remember how to use Blogger. [if you are reading this, i've accomplished that...yay!]

i included a postcard that listed their name and assigned month....the rest was up to them:

Do you want me to create something with the theme of dryer lint? I will attempt to do your theme justice. Do you want me to only use green yarn and lima beans? Will do. Do you want me to write a poem about a cat? I could probably do that. Do you want me to perform a dance about Vladimir Putin at the Mall of America. I’m not sure how excited I will be to do it, but it will be done. You can be as broad or as specific as you want.

i tried to stress that the things i would be creating could be bad (AKA not good), but the point is that OCCY15 gives us BOTH an opportunity to be creative. it’s a win-win. (see the whole year of returned challenges all taped up on my door in the picture above)

and wow, i got some truly AMAZING challenges...from music to furniture to bike rides...each one so unique and cool! for reals. i think its going to be a fun (and funny) journey, please join me!

12/13/14

so, it's time to bring the blog back to life with a challenge! my personal creativity project challenge, which I have titled "operation creativity challenge yo - 2015!" whew, I just said challenge a lot.

2/18/13

2/4/13

i'm having some serious winter bleh AKA struggling with the cold/dark...and seem to be losing hope that it will ever be warm again. i know it will, but these frigid months are just dragging on and on. since i can't control the weather, i'm trying to think tropical thoughts AND i started my run training again. exercise is a good way to get warm...that and the sauna at the gym. i hope you are staying warm today!